Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) Status Report

October 29, 2012

1. Upcoming School Contacts

South Florida Science Museum (SFSM), West Palm Beach, Florida is slated for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Tuesday, October 30 at 15:58 UTC. SFSM and the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Club, WPBARC, which maintains a radio station within the museum, are working with area teachers to provide educational content to students emphasizing NASA, the ISS and amateur radio. The primary target audience is underserved, at-risk youth, ages 11-15.

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact has been scheduled for Southern Tier Catholic and Archbishop Walsh Academy, Olean, New York on Tuesday, October 30 at 16:16 UTC using telebridge station IK1SLD in Italy. The contact is part of a comprehensive education curriculum which will pique students' interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

Cumberland Elementary School, West Lafayette, Indiana has been slated for an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) on Tuesday, October 30 at 17:35 UTC. The contact will be integrated into a curriculum covering topics on space research, robotics and engineering. Other activities planned include night sky observations, model rocketry and electrical circuit projects.

An Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact will be held with Primarschule Aesch in Forch, Switzerland on Friday, November 2 at 13:47 UTC. The contact will complement a science education plan covering astronomy and spaceflight.

2. Successful ARISS Contacts Held

Meikei High School in Tsukuba, Japan participated in an Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact on Tuesday, October 23. Students from the science club, who are studying orbital mechanics and amateur radio satellite communications, used their own radio station, JJ1YAF to make the call to on-orbit astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, KE5DNI, an alumnus of the school. The contact was conducted in Japanese. Approximately 60 people were in attendance and media coverage included 4 newspapers as well as the Japan Broadcasting Corporation, NHK.

On Friday, October 26, students from East Falmouth Elementary School in East Falmouth, Massachusetts took part in a successful Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) contact with Sunita Williams, KD5PLB. Students asked 18 questions concerning what it is like to live in space and the experiments conducted on the Space Station. The contact was integrated into science lessons about the solar system, global climate changes on Earth and the advances in science and technology generated by space exploration. Over 100 students and guests were in attendance and reporters from two newspapers were present.

3. AMSAT News Service on ARISS

The AMSAT (Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation) News Service bulletin (ANS-302) posted on October 28 included an item about the upcoming ARISS contact with Florida school children. The contact will be held at the South Florida Science Museum using the radio station WS4FSM, which is maintained by the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Group. Using closed circuit TV, the contact will be broadcast to all county schools. The contact is scheduled for Tuesday, October 30. To view, "WS4FSM Hosts the Largest School Contact Ever With the ISS," see: http://amsat.org/pipermail/ans/2012/000661.html